PSA 10 PreRelase Raichu or Illustrator? Yore choice

[garyis2000]

At this point in my life, I wouldn't part with it for double that figure.

Actually Jason. You could take the 60k for yours then give Scott 40k for his and everybody wins lol.

---------- Post added 05/09/2013 at 08:28 PM ----------

I like this philosophy.

The two cards are both #1 in their own realms, and these realms cannot be crossed, therefore you cannot get a definite answer as to the ultimate #1.



EDIT: BY THE WAY, YOU NEED TO FIX THE TITLE. "YORE" is most likely not the word you are looking for. I am sure you meant "Your choice." Unless you did intend to say "Obsolete choice" or "Long ago choice."

Actually, when I was your age we used that word all the time lol jk.
Ill blame it on that darn auto spell:thumb:

---------- Post added 05/09/2013 at 08:36 PM ----------

If anyone has seen the sale history of the PSA 8 Honus Wagner, it has increased by a considerable amount with each sale. This will more than likely happen to the Illustrator. It's at the point where one more sale could make it "unattainable" to most or all of us. Who knows, eventually it could go over $100,000 and from there to 1/4 million and up and up. All that needs to happen is an all time high sale and it could sky rocket. It happened with the 1st edition Neo Destiny box. One auction went up to $2500 and now people won't part with it for less even though it had always sold for $800 previous to that one sale. Prices of "rare" items and really rare items have a way of spiraling out of control price wise.

Good points Raichu. The old sales ladder does often escalate collectible value but numerous sales have to take place with small increases each time and the more public the sales the better. Having a celebrity attached to the sale helps too ie:Bruce McNall/Wayne Gretsky on the Wagner.

 

[Haze]

I believe a full set of SNAP promos would compete with the two top cards. The last snap card sold for $3000+. Multiply that by 10 and you get $30,000. I know one person here that would give up a lot for the bulbasaur I would definitely buy a snap promo for $3000. The artwork is so unique!

 

[smpratte]

That is true. The snap cards are beautiful! Those unique illustrations! :smile:

The 97 pika set would poke its head in there too. But as far as an individual cards, it is definitely those two (Illustrator and Raichu).

 

[Haze]

97' Pika Set is so awesome for the fact it was the first tournament.

 

[cbd1235]

Actually Jason. You could take the 60k for yours then give Scott 40k for his and everybody wins lol.

Done and done hahahahah

 

[FrostyFluxy]

I'll take a Prerelease Raichu any day due to the story behind it. Illustrator does not have the mystique or any back story behind it.

I have to object to this. How can you possibly say that the Illustrator has no back story to it? Every card has a story behind it whether it is a Base set Bulbasaur or a Charizard EX. The Illustrator, I would say, has more of a story than the Pre-Release Raichu.

"In late 1997, CoroCoro held an Illustration contest where entrants are invited to send in illustrations of requested Pokémon, and have them featured on a card in the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Shogakukan are the primary hosts of the contests in Japan, with the majority of them held through their CoroCoro publications. The top 4 winners of the illustration contest had their artwork featured as one of the Vending Machine cards. These winners were not only awarded by having their art featured on real Pokémon cards, they also received the coveted Pokémon Illustrator card."

The Pre-Release Raichu on the other hand was a mistake. Simply a printing error that was obtained in-house and then sold. There wasn't any hype sounding the release of the card, nor any competition amongst the players, collectors or just kids having fun.

I hold the Illustrator card in the highest regard as it showed that Pokemon, MediaFactory, Shogakukan, CoroCoro everyone involved cared for the true fans, the kids. They didn't need to make a unique card for them, they already made their illustration a real card but they gave them another prize. It's not just the card itself which means a lot, it's everything involved with this card that means so much more.

Even the Illustrators card text hold true to this;

"We certify that your illustration is an excellent entry in the Pokémon Card Game Illustration Contest. Therefore, we state that you are an Officially Authorized Pokémon Card Illustrator and admire your skill."

This is why I love it so, and there is an excellent story, which has now become a part of Pokemon's legacy.

 

[mkpokecc]

Comparing the Pr-release Riachu and the Illustrator is like (get ready for cliche phrase) comparing apples to oranges. For starters, this may be obvious, but they are not even the same language. Second, The Per-release Riahcu is a widely distributed base set card that was accidentally given a stamp in which (supposedly) 21 were made. The illustrator is a promotional card designed specifically for the winners 6 to 12 winners of an illustration contest. Now, to ask which card is the "true" holy grail of cards is a moot point considering that if you do not like Japanese cards than you would prefer the Pre-release Riachu and vice versa.

For me personally I have always been fond of the Japanese cards, so I like the Illustrator. I love the unique illustration of Pikachu holding the paint brush. I remember flipping through Beckett Pokemon collector in 1999 and coming across an $8000 card in the price guide section. From that point on the Pokemon Illustrator card became my holy grail card. Now, would I pass on a pre-chu? Heck No! But would it ever have the same place in my heart as the Illustrator...nope!

 

[Daelum]

To be honest, I think the value of the Prerelease Raichu is stupid. I have more one-of-a-kind errors than there are PreRais, so why is this card worth so fricken much? When was it decided that the card would be worth thousands upon thousands?TheCharizardAuthority has similar items - cards printed but never released - yet those aren't worth thousands of dollars each.

 

[garyis2000]

The biggest difference is one is a documented rarity. The other is either "hot air" or a "puff of smoke"
That's why I'd prefer an authenticated Pre Raichu...because there isn't one!

 

[smpratte]

That is true. I am glad someone commented on the Illustrator's back story. It only exists because it has one.

I am surprised no one mentioned how the Illustrator was in the yahoo article as the most valuable card. At the end of the day, it sold for the most and will always realize the highest price for an individual card.

If pokemon continues to grow (knock on wood everyone) then you are going to run into more of what we saw a few weeks ago, counterfeit Prechu's. It is much easier for a low life to copy that "prerelease" stamp onto a legitimate card than to reproduce an entire card.

I had a guy from the US message me on ebay. He showed me a scan or 2 of his fake pre-chu. As you can see in the photo's, the card would pass to most novice collectors. I bet even some who posted here would think seriously about purchasing it. After the member showed me these photo's, I told him that it would be illegal to sell the card on ebay and it would be removed immediately. Thankfully he never listed it.

If the authentic copy could somehow be authenticated by PSA it would put everything to rest. It would also prevent a lot of novice/newer collectors from becoming victims.

 

[Daelum]

I had a guy from the US message me on ebay. He showed me a scan or 2 of his fake pre-chu. As you can see in the photo's, the card would pass to most novice collectors. I bet even some who posted here would think seriously about purchasing it. After the member showed me these photo's, I told him that it would be illegal to sell the card on ebay and it would be removed immediately. Thankfully he never listed it.

The stamp is too far to the right! I'm not a novice

 

[garyis2000]

That is true. I am glad someone commented on the Illustrator's back story. It only exists because it has one.

I am surprised no one mentioned how the Illustrator was in the yahoo article as the most valuable card. At the end of the day, it sold for the most and will always realize the highest price for an individual card.

If pokemon continues to grow (knock on wood everyone) then you are going to run into more of what we saw a few weeks ago, counterfeit Prechu's. It is much easier for a low life to copy that "prerelease" stamp onto a legitimate card than to reproduce an entire card.

I had a guy from the US message me on ebay. He showed me a scan or 2 of his fake pre-chu. As you can see in the photo's, the card would pass to most novice collectors. I bet even some who posted here would think seriously about purchasing it. After the member showed me these photo's, I told him that it would be illegal to sell the card on ebay and it would be removed immediately. Thankfully he never listed it.

If the authentic copy could somehow be authenticated by PSA it would put everything to rest. It would also prevent a lot of novice/newer collectors from becoming victims.

Very well said Scott. Pretty much exactly what I have been feeling:thumb:

 

[BJJ763]

I have to object to this. How can you possibly say that the Illustrator has no back story to it?

Very simple - i don't know of it (other than it was some prize for some tournament or something.

Prerelease Raichu on the other hand i know the whispered legend of and was honored when i was brought into the inner circle to see it.

 

[FrostyFluxy]

Very simple - i don't know of it (other than it was some prize for some tournament or something.

That is possibly the worst reason I could think of for denying something. I'm sorry that your knowledge on Japanese promo cards is clearly lacking, but that certainly doesn't mean the back story doesn't exist.

If you read all of my post then you now know of it. A wild Back Story has appeared! making your comment invalid.

 

[mkpokecc]

Very simple - i don't know of it (other than it was some prize for some tournament or something.

Ha! That is like saying "Oh, weren't the Beetles just some band or something?...I don't know of them".

Whats the Pre-release riachu's story? WOTC: "Whoops....looks like we made another printing error! Who wants one?" ...good story.

 

[DJGigabyte]

I'm going to go against most of the collectors here and say I'd rather have the Raichu.

There is absolutely no denying that the Illustrator is more valuable, and looks a million times more exciting, but that's not what I'd be looking for. The Raichu just means more to me.

I started collecting later than quite a lot of others in February 2008. I missed all the hype of the original era and the trophy cards that came with it (I was into Pokémon then, but I was 9). I originally only ever viewed the card collecting as something that would take up a small amount of my time, if I occasionally bought a few packs now and again.

As it went on, I joined a couple of forums, to get information on one or two cards that I hadn't found just by googling. About seven months after I joined this site, the story of the Prerelease Raichu sale came out, and for me that was the first time that it really hit home that Pokémon card collecting was actually a big deal, something that I could get involved with properly. To me, the card became a symbol of the ultimate goal in collecting, an "I don't care how long it takes, someday I will own that" kind of item.

It also promoted me to start a conversation with Will, which eventually lead to me talking to others collectors and getting really involved in the community.

So for me, the Raichu will always represent one of the biggest moments in my collecting experience to date, and I'd like to own it just for that.

While it is nice to own items that not many others have, or knowing that your collection is worth a decent amount of money, the main reason I collect and the main reason anyone should collect, is if their collection makes them happy.

If you can tie certain memories or experiences to certain cards, then that makes them more valuable to you.

I'm not saying that if an Illustrator came along when I could afford it I wouldn't snap it up, the Raichu is just my personal preference because of what the card means to me.

 

[funmonkey54]

There is a lot of disregard in this thread for the different types of Pokemon collectors as well. Many have bias toward the artwork and talk as though artwork is all that can generate a story, but this simply is not true. There ARE error collectors.

An error collector takes pride in possessing the quirky. And the PreRaichu fits that bill perfectly. Here we have an error card that WAS caught prior to distribution, and yet still exists. That alone is extremely rare. And the story comes in for how and why it still exists. Who snagged them? How many? Who got them? We have answers, full and partial, to some of the questions, but it is the lack of certainty that motivates continued research. Error collectors are just as "serious" as other collectors, they just have their eyes on different prizes.

So, when the statement was made that these are both top cards from different worlds, I'd have to agree. Not comparable. But even if you chase the holy grail from one world, I believe there should be a certain level of respect maintained for the holy grail of the other world. Maybe the PreRaichu is "Just a base Raichu with a stamp" to you. Or maybe the illustrator is just "Pikachu with a writing utensil" to you. But the reality is that both embody what different kinds of top-tier collectors seek.

 

[smpratte]

No one should feel disregarded. Anyone can personally value any card that they want, even a fire energy. :fire:

With that said, people will have their strong opinions one way or another. This thread is going to have people making a case for both cards.

The people emphasizing illustrations also collect errors. I collect errors, I collect everything, as do many other collectors here.

The points being raised about artwork are highlighting something that is lacking in English cards, unique artwork. It does not mean that English cards are worthless. It is highlighting a significant factor that typically turns serious collectors away when they are considering breaking the bank for a card.

 

[waynegg]

Since there will never be a PSA 10 Illustrator, I would go with the Raichu(since its at least a real possibility). A PSA 10 I.lustrator would be a fake that somehow slipped by.

The points being raised about artwork are highlighting something that is lacking in English cards, unique artwork..

But, what about this one...:biggrin:

 

[smpratte]

PSA won't grade PreRelease Raichu's...